423 Locked

423

Locked

Example HTTP Response

HTTP Response

HTTP/1.1 423 Locked
Content-Type: application/xml

<error><lock-token-submitted/></error>

Common Causes

WebDAV resource locked for editing
File locked by another user
Resource under exclusive access

Technical Details

What does this mean?

Someone else has the keys! This resource is locked by another process. Wait your turn!

Technical Definition

The resource that is being accessed is locked.

RFC Says

"The 423 (Locked) status code means the source or destination resource of a method is locked. This response SHOULD contain an appropriate precondition or postcondition code, such as 'lock-token-submitted' or 'no-conflicting-lock'."

Plain English:

423 means 'This resource is locked and you can't modify it right now.' This comes from WebDAV and is used when a resource has an exclusive lock. Someone (possibly you in another session) needs to release the lock before you can make changes.

Common Misinterpretation

Don't use 423 for general access control - use 403 for that. Use 423 only if you've implemented a proper locking mechanism (like WebDAV locks or pessimistic locking). For most REST APIs, optimistic locking with 409 or 412 is more appropriate than locks with 423.

View RFC Documentation

Code Snippets

Ready-to-use code for returning this HTTP status in your application:

Node.js

// Express.js
app.get('/example', (req, res) => {
  res.status(423).json({
    error: 'Locked',
    message: 'Your error message here'
  });
});

// Native HTTP
const http = require('http');

http.createServer((req, res) => {
  res.writeHead(423, { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' });
  res.end(JSON.stringify({
    error: 'Locked',
    message: 'Your error message here'
  }));
}).listen(3000);

423 Locked FAQ

What causes a 423 Locked error?

WebDAV resource locked for editing. File locked by another user. Resource under exclusive access.

// Express.js app.get('/example', (req, res) => { res.status(423).json({ error: 'Locked', message: 'Your error message here' }); }); // Native HTTP const http = require('http'); http.createServer((req, res) => { res.writeHead(423, { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' }); res.end(JSON.stringify({ error: 'Locked', message: 'Your error message here' })); }).listen(3000);